HUB WAY: Andrew Ference celebrates his first-period goal that chased Canucks goalie Roberto Luongo and sent the Bruins on to a season-saving 5-2 win in Game 6 last night in Boston.reuters

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BOSTON — If you are a baseball fan of a certain age in New York, the scores are emblazoned in memory: 16-3, 10-0, 12-0.

As is 10-9.

That was the 1960 World Series, the Yankees winning three games by an aggregate 38-3, the Pirates winning four by an aggregate 24-17 including the Game 7, 10-9 triumph on Bill Mazeroski’s home run in the bottom of the ninth.

World Champion Pirates in 1960, even while humiliated three times in the first six games, even while outscored in the Series 55-27.

This now, 51 years later, is the Stanley Cup Finals in which the scores of 8-1, 4-0 and last night’s 5-2 will forever be etched in the memories of every proper and improper Bostonian extant, those the scores of the three Bruins’ victories, all at home, the latest of which squared this nasty and strange series at 3-all heading into tomorrow night’s Game 7 across the continent.

The Canucks, winners of three at home by the scores of 1-0, 3-2 (OT) and 1-0, may yet win this. Roberto Luongo may yet get to hoist the Stanley Cup over his head.

But Luongo and the Canucks have left a sour taste in just about everyone’s mouth with the goaltender’s inability to come up with routine saves in Boston and his team’s failure to compete in three straight blowout losses on the road.

Last night, Luongo was beaten 5:31 into the match on a right wing, short-side wrist shot by Brad Marchand. Thirty-five seconds later, a Milan Lucic left-circle wrist shot leaked five-hole. When Andrew Ference blew one by from the left point at 8:35 to extend the lead to 3-0, Luongo was done for the night, pulled for the second straight game in Boston, banned in Boston where he allowed 15 goals on 66 shots in 111:34 (8.07 GAA, .773 save pct.).

The Canucks have been outscored 19-8. With the Cup in the house and 60 minutes away from bringing it to Vancouver for the first time in the franchise’s 41-year history, Luongo looked like a house league goalie, swallowed whole by the moment despite protestations otherwise.

“Honestly, I had a good feeling all day; there was not extra nerves or anything like that,” the goaltender said. “I was excited to play. I mean, we had a chance to win the Cup.

“Nerves are part of playing in the playoffs. I think we had nerves every game, pretty much.”

Trailing 4-0 after 9:35 and after the second period, the Canucks’ skilled players began to move the puck, began to create some time and space for themselves. These are, after all, the league’s regular-season champions who survived the opening round with a Game 7 overtime win at home against the Blackhawks after frittering away a 3-0 lead in the series — during which Luongo was benched for Game 6.

This is what it’s about now for the Canucks, who clearly have the second-best goaltender in the series on their side, with Tim Thomas the dominant figure of the Finals. The Boston goaltender will capture the Conn Smythe Trophy, win or lose.

Tomorrow will be about Luongo, about his resolve and about his teammates’ belief in him. They have collapsed in concert with him in Boston. They will live or die with him in Game 7, the way they lived with him for the Game 7 OT victory at home against Chicago.

“I mean, I got to believe in myself, right?” the goaltender asked rhetorically. “That’s a big component of bouncing back and playing a good game.

“It’s going to be a dream to play Game 7. I can’t hang my head and feel sorry for myself. That would be the worst thing I could do.”

Actually, the worst thing Luongo could do would be to wake up and find himself still in Boston.